Sports
Tigers seek sweep of Rays to reduce magic number
Sep 25, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson (20) hits a two-run home run against the Tampa Bay Rays in the sixth inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images The magic is back at Detroit’s Comerica Park and the Tigers’ magic number keeps shrinking.
With their latest victory, 7-1 over the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday, the Tigers saw their magic number to secure an American League wild card fall to three. Detroit (84-74) is tied for the second and third wild cards with the Kansas City Royals (84-74), who own the tiebreaker.
The Tigers and Royals remained two games ahead of the Minnesota Twins and 2 1/2 in front of the Seattle Mariners.
Detroit, which has won four straight and eight of its last nine contests, can complete a series sweep against the Rays on Thursday afternoon.
“We’ve got a lot more baseball to play,” Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson said in a postgame TV interview. “I love where we’re at. We’re winning each day and finding ways to get better every single day. We’ve got the city behind us. You can’t ask for anything more. It’s been an unbelievable couple of weeks.”
A crowd of 32,463 came out to watch the red-hot Tigers, who were sitting at .500 as recently as Sept. 6. They have won 13 of their past 16 games.
“We’re trying our best to make everybody in this city proud of us and we’re doing well,” Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said. “It means a lot that our fans care. It was an electric atmosphere (Wednesday), and this is exactly what we want at Comerica.”
Parker Meadows provided some early thunder with a leadoff homer in the first inning. Torkelson, who struck out in the second and fourth innings, blasted a two-run homer and added an RBI double.
“We need him to be a threat,” Hinch said of Torkelson. “He had a couple tough at-bats and then all of sudden, boom, he changed the dynamic of the game.”
As he has often done the second half of the season, Hinch played the matchup game with his pitching staff. He cycled through six pitchers on Wednesday with 22-year-old right-hander Jackson Jobe pitching a scoreless ninth inning in his big-league debut.
Jobe, the majors’ top pitching prospect according to MLB Pipeline, was called up from Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday.
Tampa Bay (78-80) officially was eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. The Rays were three games over .500 on May 18, but they lost 16 of their next 24 games.
The Rays came into Detroit on a four-game winning streak, but back-to-back losses erased all hope of a postseason berth.
“Unfortunately not how we wanted it (to go) with the start of the season. But we are where we kind of played and how we performed,” Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said. “But there’s certainly optimism finishing strong and going into next year.”
Reese Olson (4-8, 3.49 ERA) will start the series finale for Detroit.
The right-hander has made two appearances since recovering from a right shoulder strain that sidelined him for nearly two months. After giving up four runs in 2 1/3 innings to Kansas City, Olson held the Baltimore Orioles to one run in three innings on Saturday. He threw 58 pitches in that outing and is unlikely to go long enough to qualify for a win on Thursday.
Olson has faced the Rays once, and he allowed four runs in five innings on Aug. 4, 2023.
Left-hander Tyler Alexander (6-5, 5.35 ERA) will get the ball for Tampa Bay. In his most recent outing, he threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings on Friday against the Toronto Blue Jays in a game the Rays won 1-0.
His lone career outing against Detroit came on April 24, when he pitched four innings of two-run relief.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Vita Vea requests trade from Buccaneers amid contract dispute
Jan 3, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Vita Vea (50) warms up before the game against the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Vita Vea has requested a trade from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after negotiations over a new contract failed to produce an agreement.
The two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle’s agent, Collin Roberts, confirmed the request to multiple reporters Monday, one day before Tampa Bay’s veteran players were scheduled to report for training camp.
Vea is entering the final season of the four-year, $71 million extension he signed in 2022. The 31-year-old is due a $17 million base salary in 2026, but none of that money is guaranteed. He can also earn up to $1 million through per-game roster bonuses.
The contract dispute had already carried into the Buccaneers’ offseason program. Vea attended mandatory minicamp in June but did not participate in practices, allowing him to avoid fines while continuing to push for an extension.
Coach Todd Bowles said at the time that Vea was healthy and described the hold-in as “part of the business” side of the league.
It is unclear whether Vea will take part in training camp while Tampa Bay weighs its response to the request.
Vea remained one of the most important pieces of the Buccaneers’ defense last season, starting all 17 games and recording 34 tackles, 4.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss and 13 quarterback hits. His presence in the middle has helped Tampa Bay consistently rank among the NFL’s stronger teams against the run.
The Buccaneers selected the 6-foot-4, 347-pound lineman with the 12th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. He has totaled 256 tackles, 35 sacks and 79 QB hits in 112 games (107 starts) over eight seasons.
Vea also helped Tampa Bay win Super Bowl LV and earned Pro Bowl selections following the 2021 and 2024 seasons.
His request creates another major contract issue for the Buccaneers as camp begins. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is also entering the final year of his deal and has been seeking an extension, though he participated fully during minicamp.
Tampa Bay can reject Vea’s request and require him to play out the season, continue trying to reach an extension or explore a trade for one of the league’s most established interior defenders.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Guardians-Reds postponed, set for doubleheader Tuesday
Jul 27, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Rain pelts the stadium before the game between Cleveland Guardians and the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. The game was postponed due to inclement weather. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images The Cleveland Guardians and Cincinnati Reds will have to wait another day to begin the latest installment of the Ohio Cup.
Monday night’s series opener in Cincinnati was postponed because of rain and rescheduled as part of a split doubleheader on Tuesday.
The makeup game will begin at 1:40 p.m. local time, with the second game remaining at its originally scheduled time of 7:10 p.m.
Cleveland had planned to start right-hander Slade Cecconi (4-7, 4.60 ERA) against Cincinnati right-hander Chase Burns (12-1, 2.42) in the opener, and they are listed as the probable pitchers for Tuesday’s first game.
The scheduled pitching matchup for Tuesday night features Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams (10-5, 3.78) against Reds right-hander Brady Singer (5-9, 4.53).
The teams will conclude the three-game series Wednesday night in Cincinnati.
–Field Level Media
Sports
A'ja Wilson, Aces seek defensive reset against Fire
Jul 22, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) shoots the ball as Washington Mystics center Lauren Betts (51) defends in the first half at CareFirst Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images After uncharacteristically dropping two of their last three games, the host Las Vegas Aces are looking to get back on track against the Portland Fire in each team’s first game after the All-Star break.
A’ja Wilson poured in 38 points against the Washington Mystics in the Aces last game on July 22. However, the Mystics managed to erase a nine-point deficit in the final four minutes to steal the victory at home. The Aces’ previous loss on July 12 was among their most humiliating of the season, a 109-75 defeat to the Indiana Fever at home, in which only Wilson and Jackie Young reached double-figures in scoring.
“The key for us is when we don’t defend, we lose,” Aces coach Becky Hammon said after losing to the Mystics. “Giving up 100 points, a 29-point fourth quarter, we’re not going to win those games. We’re 0-3 when we do that. In our losses, we give up 95 points, so the defense wasn’t good enough … We’re not where we want to be, obviously. Until we start playing defense, we’re not a serious team. We’re just not. We have to play that end of the floor.”
The Aces have faced the Fire twice this season and both matches were in the Rose City rather than on the Strip. Wilson dominated both meetings, scoring 32 points in both a 105-89 thrashing on June 11 and in a closer 88-80 effort on July 9. Carla Leite led Portland in scoring in both games, with 18 in the first meeting and 13 in the second.
“I think last time with Vegas they were really deliberate to basically make sure our pick and roll handlers weren’t getting downhill into the paint,” Fire coach Alex Sarama said. “I think we just have to be more deliberate with the spacings we’re getting to and then our cover solutions, if we know that something’s being taken away.”
Leite is the Fire’s top scorer this season, averaging 15.3 points along with six assists per game. It’s been a tough start for the first-year expansion team in Portland, which began the season 6-6 but has lost 10 of its last 15 games. The Fire went into the All-Star break on a two-game losing streak, allowing 101 points in back-to-back games against the Minnesota Lynx and Dallas Wings.
Poor defensive efforts have been a pattern for the Fire all season, as they rank 13th out of 15 teams with 90.6 points allowed per game. Meanwhile the Aces rank third in the league offensively with 91 points per game.
–Field Level Media
Vita Vea requests trade from Buccaneers amid contract dispute
Guardians-Reds postponed, set for doubleheader Tuesday
